


First-Hand

by AlterEgon



Category: A Knight's Tale (2001)
Genre: Gen, Treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-23
Updated: 2012-12-23
Packaged: 2017-11-22 04:32:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/605847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlterEgon/pseuds/AlterEgon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prince Edward sets out to get some first-hand experience of things members of the royal family usually do not get into contact with.</p>
            </blockquote>





	First-Hand

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lalaietha](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lalaietha/gifts).



 

"Well?" Edward asked, turning twice on the spot. "How do I look?"

"Well," William said, head cocked to one side as he took in his prince, "You look like you're trying hard."

The Black Prince frowned. "Is that good?" he wanted to know.

"I don't…" think so, William wanted to say, but instead opted for a more diplomatic route, "…know."

Edward looked down at the clothes he wore. "What's wrong with this?"

Making a face, William thought hard, but could not find any other than the direct approach. "Nothing," he allowed. "The clothes are perfect. Except maybe the boots. But you could get away with the boots. It's you who's the problem."

"Me?" He looked genuinely surprised.

William nodded. "You look like – well, like a prince dressed up in a commoner's clothes."

"I am a—" Prince Edward started to protest.

"Then why bother with the clothes if everyone's going to be able to tell it's a ploy?"

He had no answer to that. "Okay," he admitted. "What do I do?"

The younger knight walked once around his liege. "First, don't stand so straight. Slouch a bit more. You don't own the place—"

"Actually, I do."

"Tonight, you don't," William continued smoothly. "You are trying to be unremarkable. Unnoticed by the guard, unnoticed by the nobles that may be running around. If they notice a commoner, that's usually bad news for the commoner. Keep your eyes down. You're new in town. You're not looking for trouble. That's better. Walk a few steps."

He stood back and watched Edward put a lot of effort into a non-royal stance as he made his way to the door.

"You're moving as if you're wearing a sword," William pointed out. "You're not. You've never worn a sword, so you have no reason to move as if it's missing."

Edward turned around. "I don't even know I'm doing it. How am I supposed to not do it if I don't even know I'm doing it?"

Sighing, William demonstrated. "Remind me again – why are we doing this?" he asked, a long-suffering note creeping into his voice.

"Because I'm your liege and I told you to," Edward said with a smirk. "Because I want to see first-hand what our people think and say, unfiltered through the commoner/royal barrier. That's not something many future rulers can say of themselves, right?"

"I could tell you what they're saying," William muttered. Oh, it had sounded fun when Edward had first brought it up, but that was _before_ he had realised that just like he had had to learn to act the noble when he had taken up the role of Ulrich of Liechtenstein so many months before, the prince wouldn't have the first idea of how to act like a common-born man with no ties to the court.

Edward nodded. "Nevertheless," he said. "It's not the same. Here – is this any better?"

William considered. "I guess it'll do. Just don't forget about it. And," he grinned again, "you should speak more sloppily, my liege. You still sound like a noble."

The Prince frowned at his knight.

"Drop a few letters," William advised. "Think of how Wat talks, or Roland, or Kate…" He noticed Edward's look. "Well, maybe we should just say you're from Ireland."

"The Irish sound different," the Prince pointed out.

William grinned. "Your commoners don't know that."

Edward didn't look any more convinced of the undertaking than William felt, but after another moment's thought he shrugged and walked to the door. "Are you coming? Let's have the horses saddled and try it!"

The thatcher's-son-turned-knight ran after his prince. "Now, wait a moment, Eddy!" he objected, "We're not going to have anything saddled here. Have you ever seen a commoner ride into town on a horse in royal tack?"

"Eddy?" Edward's eyebrows almost collided with his hairline.

"I can't very well call you 'my liege' or 'Prince Edward' if we're trying to pass for common-born cousins," William pointed out.

*

A pair of unsaddled horses that spent most of their time pulling carts brought them into the village. William could see quite plainly that Edward was anything but relaxed on the broad and not particularly clean back, but he said nothing and at least his discomfort masked his all-too-noble riding style.

Edward looked around curiously as he entered the tavern behind William. Well, at least that fit his role as distant relative from far, far away well enough.

The knight picked a table for them that was somewhat out of the way, where they had a chance of listening in on conversations without making it too likely for people to approach them. He waved to the waitress and signalled for ale for both of them.

It didn't take long before the tankards were set down in front of them. William tossed her a coin and took a mouthful of his. Edward drank more carefully, hesitantly putting down the tankard after the first few drops.

"Not to your liking, is it?" someone asked from behind him.

The prince turned around to find himself looking up into the less-than-friendly face of a burly, badly-shaven man looking ready to start a brawl.

William tensed, preparing for whatever was about to happen, when Edward shook his head. "Not at all," he said. "It's quite good." To prove his words, he took up his tankard again to take a deep gulp from it.

The stranger watched as Edward put down the tankard and forced a grin on his face. Then the man suddenly erupted in laughter and grabbed a chair for himself – though not before heartily slapping Edward on the shoulder in a manner that the prince clearly had not expected.

"New here?" the man asked as he made himself comfortable at their table.

William nodded in Edward's place. "Cousin," he said. "Visitin' and all."

The man nodded knowingly. "Come to see the big city, eh?"

Edward nodded, forcing a smile.

 

*

 

It was the serving girl who caused their evening to take a turn for the worse.

Or, more accurately, it was Edward's gallant manner of ordering another round of drink that caused one of the men by the bar to get up and make his way over to where they were seated.

"She's a pretty wench, eh?" he said without introduction.

Edward nodded an affirmative, never noticing William's warning look. "Oh yes – she's quite the—"

The rest of what he was going to say drowned in the ale that was emptied into his face.

Royal pride injured, Edward surged to his feet and whirled around.

"You keep your hands and your eyes off of my girl!" the man growled, following up with a fist aimed at Edward's face.

The prince blocked the punch, more instinctively than anything else, and William rose to prevent worse just as their unplanned companion and defender of the tavern's ale, now quite drunk, staggered up from his chair.

"Tha's me friend Eddy ye're talkin' to!" he growled just before tackling the new man.

The sudden ferocious attack alerted everyone in the tavern to the opportunity of a brawl. 

"Hey!" William yelled over the fray. "Can't we—" 

He had to duck a flying bowl and moved right into an elbow that made him see stars. "I guess not," he muttered, and set to trying to fight his way through to Edward's side of the table.

He wasn't quite there when the call "Guards!" penetrated the din, causing some to drop their opponents where they stood and beat a hasty retreat. 

Edward, not used to heeding such alarms, had not even loosened his grip on his attacker – who had been in the process of suffering a devastating defeat – when strong hands grabbed him from behind and twisted his arms back painfully. 

"Hey!" Edward protested, trying to turn around to face the men, to find that all he accomplished was get himself into an even less comfortable position. 

"He started it!" the man who had complained about Edward's attentions to the serving girl claimed, rubbing a quickly darkening bruise in his face. "He attacked me without any reason!"

"That is a lie!" Edward objected, straining against his captors. "Release me immediately!"

The captain of the guards chuckled. "Release me immediately," he mocked. "And who do you think you are?"

"He's my cousin," William, also restrained by a guard, but, in contrast to his prince not fighting it, spoke up. "He's not used to the ale…"

"I am Prince Edward," Edward said at the same time. "Look at me – don't you know your prince?"

The guards guffawed, but without releasing either captive. "Prince Edward, he says," the captain laughed. "Well, _milord_ , how about we give ye an extra tour of our dungeons then? I'm sure ye've always wanted t' see them."

"But I _am—"_ Edward started again, sounding slightly frantic now.

"Look," William tried again. "He's—"

The captain grinned at him. "Your cousin, I know. You can keep him company."

 

*

 

"Someone's going to have to get us out of here," Edward said. He was standing by the wall, stretching on tiptoe to look out the tiny, high-set window. "We'll be missed and someone is going to come looking for us…"

William was sitting in the straw, leaning back comfortably against the wall. This was quite a few steps up from his last stay in a dungeon. He rested his arms on his knees and looked quite at ease where he was. 

A chuckle escaped from his throat as he continued to watch his prince. 

"What?" Edward turned to stare down at him. "Is this funny?"

"Well," William pointed out, "at least you got a good first-hand impression of the city watch dungeons. That's not something many future rulers can say of themselves, right?"

 


End file.
